The Theme of Growing Up in Russian Novels
Youth is the time when each builds himself up so the world may shoot him back down. Every little boy is told that he has the ability to do whatever he wants. As he grows older, however, he will realize this is not true. Though one may exert all, he is still bound to fail at reaching certain aims. Fyodor Dostoevsky, in Crime and Punishment, Ivan Turgenev, in Fathers and Sons, and Yevgeny Zamyatin, in WE, tap into this universal theme. Each of the aforementioned authors uses the motto represented in a quote from Crime and Punishment, "...the destruction of the present for the sake of the better," as a goal whose insatiability leads to a main character's devastation.
Dostoevsky's psychologically analytical Crime and Punishment follows what happens to Rodion Romanovitch Raskolnikov after he murders Alyona Ivanovna, a disgusting old pawnbroker. Raskolnikov wrote an article on his theory that "supermen" may use any faculty necessary, including committing horrendous crimes, to alter society for the best. To test himself for this ability, Raskolnikov plans and carries out the murder of Alyona, though he kills her sister, too, with the idea of distributing the ancient woman's riches to people who could make good use of it. Soon after, Rodya becomes severely ill, remaining in bed for many days. His article, which mentioned that those who were not supermen would feel very guilty and punish themselves, now proved its writer to be ordinary. "…they castigate themselves, for they are very conscientious: some perform this service for one another and others chastise themselves with their own hands….They will impose various public acts of penitence upon themselves with a bea...
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... and Punishment trans. Constance Garnett (1866; New York: Bantam Books, 1981) 243.
Dostoevsky 245.
Dostoevsky 498.
Dostoevsky 499.
Ivan Turgenev, Fathers and Sons, ed. & trans. Michael R. Katz (1862; New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 1996) 69.
Turgenev 69.
Turgenev 80.
Dostoevsky 243.
Turgenev 71.
Yevgeny Zamyatin, WE, trans. Mirra Ginsburg (1927; New York: Avon Books, 1987) 146.
Zamyatin 219.
Zamyatin 232.
Dostoevsky 243.
Works Cited
Dostoevsky, Fyodor. Crime and Punishment. Trans. Constance Garnett. 1866. New York: Bantam Books, 1981.
Turgenev, Ivan. Fathers and Sons. Ed. & Trans. Michael R. Katz. 1862. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 1996.
Zamyatin, Yevgeny. WE. Trans. Mirra Ginsburg. 1927.
Moss, W., 2014. A History of Russia Volume 2: Since 1855. 1st ed. London, England: Anthem Press London, pp.112-113.
In Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment, Raskolnikov's initial crime, failure, and acceptance of mistakes are his road to overcoming his ego, as well as self discovery.
Fathers and Children, a very intelligent novel written by Ivan Turgenev, presents the conflicts between the generations. Generation gap is common in our daily life, for different growing up environment generates distinctive cognitions. However, when Turgenev adds in the specific social background of the times, when old romantic idealists meet with a young nihilist, the conflict sublimates and becomes more intense. Among all of the characters in the story, Bazarov is absolutely the one who is the most attractive and the most controversial. Both as the nihilists, it is easy for people to link Bazarov with Pechorin, who is the main character in Lermontov’s The Hero of Our Time. Though both of them are
Ivan Turgenev’s Fathers and Sons takes place in midnineteenth century Russia. Throughout the text Turgenev explores the pros and cons of the nihilist philosophy and how nihilism, coupled with the presence of generational and class based animosities, affects the greater Russian identity. Properties of nihilism are examined and tested as the characters encounter aristocratic lifestyles and the redeeming power of love. The female characters in Fathers and Sons represent a wide range of socioeconomic positions and temperaments, these women test the thinking of the nihilists by their propensities towards emotion, order, feminism, shyness, and propriety. This exploration of gender roles and the balance of power between women and the men that they control is subject to their ascribed classes and the relationships they hold. These women fall into two major categories: the autocratic and the dependent. The aristocratic “mothers” and dependent “daughters” of Fathers and Sons bring about the reevaluation of Bazarov and Arkady’s nihilistic beliefs and furthermore utilize their feminine qualities to manipulate the men in their lives.
Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment begins with Rodion Romanovich Raskolnikov living in poverty and isolation in St. Petersburg. The reader soon learns that he was, until somewhat recently, a successful student at the local university. His character at that point was not uncommon. However, the environment of the grim and individualistic city eventually encourages Raskolnikov’s undeveloped detachment and sense of superiority to its current state of desperation. This state is worsening when Raskolnikov visits an old pawnbroker to sell a watch. During the visit, the reader slowly realizes that Raskolnikov plans to murder the woman with his superiority as a justification. After the Raskolnikov commits the murder, the novel deeply explores his psychology, yet it also touches on countless other topics including nihilism, the idea of a “superman,” and the value of human life. In this way, the greatness of Crime and Punishment comes not just from its examination of the main topic of the psychology of isolation and murder, but the variety topics which naturally arise in the discussion.
Wood, A. (1986). The Russian Revolution. Seminar Studies in History. (2) Longman, p 1-98. ISBSN 0582355591, 9780582355590
In his book Crime and Punishment, Dostoevsky explores the paths of two men, Raskolnikov and Svidrigailov. These two men encompass many similar problems and obstacles throughout their lives. Both commit murders and are faced with the long and mentally excruciating journey of seeking redemption. They also share many characteristics of their personalities. The reason that the outcomes of their lives are so drastically different is due to the fact that they have completely different perspectives on life.
Within the tortured mind of a young Russian university student, an epic battle rages between two opposite ideologies - the conservative Christianity characteristic of the time, and a new modernist humanism gaining prevalence in academia. Fyodor Dostoevsky in the novel Crime and Punishment uses this conflict to illustrate why the coldly rational thought that is the ideal of humanism represses our essential emotions and robs us of all that is human. He uses the changes in Raskolnikov's mental state to provide a human example of modernism's effect on man, placing emphasis upon the student's quest for forgiveness and the effect of repressed emotion. The moral side of Raskolnikov's mind requires absolution in a Christian manner. This need obliviates his claim to be a Nietzschean superman, and illustrates that all humans have a desire for morality.
In Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment, Raskalnikov undergoes a period of extreme psychological upheaval. By comparing this death and rebirth of Raskalnikov's psyche to the story of the resurrection of Lazarus, Dostoevsky emphasizes not only the gravity of his crimes, but also the importance of acceptance of guilt.
Crime and Punishment and Notes from the Underground Fyodor Dostoyevsky's stories are stories of a sort of rebirth. He weaves a tale of severe human suffering and how each character attempts to escape from this misery. In the novel Crime and Punishment, he tells the story of Raskolnikov, a former student who murders an old pawnbroker as an attempt to prove a theory. In Notes from the Underground, we are given a chance to explore Dostoyevsky's opinion of human beings.
In his novel Crime and Punishment Fyodor Dostoevsky uses Raskolnikov as a vessel for several different philosophies that were particularly prominent at the time in order to obliquely express his opinions concerning those schools of thought. Raskolnikov begins his journey in Crime and Punishment with a nihilistic worldview and eventually transitions to a more optimistic one strongly resembling Christian existentialism, the philosophy Dostoevsky preferred, although it could be argued that it is not a complete conversion. Nonetheless, by the end of his journey Raskolnikov has undergone a fundamental shift in character. This transformation is due in large part to the influence other characters have on him, particularly Sonia. Raskolnikov’s relationship with Sonia plays a significant role in furthering his character development and shaping the philosophical themes of the novel.
Riasanovsky, Nicholas V., and Mark D. Steinberg. A History of Russia. 7th ed. Oxford: Oxford, 2005. Print.
1-27. The 'Standard' of the 'Standard'. Dragomirov, M.I. & Co., Ltd. "Dragomirov on Prince Andrey and the Art of War". Tolstoy: The Critical Heritage.
According to Raskolnikov’s theory in Fyodor Dostoevsky’s “Crime and Punishment”,there are two types of people that coexist in the world; the “Extraordinary” and the “Ordinary”. The ordinary men can be defined as “Men that have to live in submission, have no right to transgress the law, because they are ordinary.”(248). To the contrary “extraordinary” men are “Men that have a right to commit any crime and to transgress the law in any way , just because they are extraordinary”(248). Dostoevsky’s theory is evident through the characters of his novel. The main character, Raskolnikov, uses his theory of extraordinary men to justify contemplated murder. There is a sense of empowerment his character experiences with the ability to step over social boundaries. He is led to believe the killing of the pawnbroker is done for the perseverance of the greater good. It is ironic that character who is shown to be powerful in the early stages of the novel subsequently go on to show many weaknesses.
Turgenev, Ivan. Fathers and Sons. Trans. Constance Garnett. New York: Barnes and Noble, 2007. Print.